NORFOLK, Va. — Editor's note: This story is a part of our "Making A Mark" series.
Norfolk School Resource Officer Shantel Chandler makes sure people know she is a mother of twins — a boy and a girl.
In 2019, while Chandler was in the Norfolk Police Academy, her daughter Ava — who had a rare genetic disorder that caused epilepsy — unexpectedly became very sick.
"Pretty much, the pneumonia had filled her lungs," Chandler said. "And in 48 hours, that was it."
Ava was just shy of her fifth birthday.
As part of Chandler's grieving process, she chronicled her journey of love, loss, and letting go of Ava in her first book, Selfless.
"I released everything," Chandler said. "How I felt, what I was thinking, you know, how I felt like God was transitioning me."
Now, Chandler's newest book aims to help other children like her daughter.
"I literally wrote a poem to encourage and uplift children with special needs," Chandler said.
The book also inspires the peers of children with special needs to embrace what makes them remarkable. It's called Uniquely Made.
"Being a police officer, you see that every child has their own uniqueness," Chandler said. "Allow me to encourage you to be unique in your own ways."
Chandler dedicated the book to Ava and the mark she made in her short time. Now, she said her daughter's impact on the world can continue for years to come.
"We don't realize what other people are going through until we go through it," Chandler said. "And I think Ava taught me that. She taught me that, 'Mommy, it's [not just] me.' So, she speaks to me to speak to everybody else."
Chandler said she plans to write more books to empower children with special needs and their families.
"Throughout all the years that we went through therapy and that I maxed out my resources making sure that [Ava] had everything she needed, I didn't have this little, purple book," Chandler said. "And I think that so many young women, especially who have children with special needs, they need that encouragement. They need that additional support."
"And so, I do think that, yes, Uniquely Made may be one of many, but it's a great start," Chandler said.
Uniquely Made is available for purchase through Chandler's website.